Tijjani Reijnders

Reijnders operates as a genuine box to box midfielder, the type most modern teams have quietly phased out for specialists who either defend or create. He carries the ball through midfield with short, quick touches, resists pressure well, and keeps arriving into the box just as a move reaches its final pass. Arriving late rather than early is what separates him from a conventional attacking midfielder.

The tension is whether a team built around Rodri's control and Haaland's finishing needs a midfielder who wants to be inside the box himself. Every forward run leaves defensive cover behind him, trusting someone else to fill the space he vacated. Watch whether his late runs coincide with City actually needing a third body in the box rather than a spare man protecting possession.